


In or Out

by ami_ven



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Community: writerverse, Getting Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:07:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25162135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ami_ven/pseuds/ami_ven
Summary: Rodney McKay was a jerk.
Relationships: Rodney McKay/John Sheppard
Comments: 10
Kudos: 98





	In or Out

**Author's Note:**

> Written for LJ community "writerverse" phase 23, challenge 01, prompt 09 "exactly as advertised"

Rodney McKay was a jerk.

It was something Rodney knew about himself, something he could hide for short periods of time, but not something he or anyone else was ultimately able to live with – even his sister had stopped speaking to him, eventually.

By the time he’d been exiled to Siberia, then to Antarctica, then to the Pegasus Galaxy, he’d given up on trying to hide it. Better for everyone to hate him immediately for what he really was than for them to like a façade and hate him even more later.

Strangely enough, though, on Atlantis, he still found some friends. Carson and Elizabeth, then Teyla and Radek, even Ford, had all seemed to like him anyway. But Carson always looked like he was trying hard not to be offended when Rodney insulted him, even by accident. Teyla and Elizabeth both looked at him like mothers did when their children had forgotten their manners. Radek would mutter to himself in Czech (Rodney couldn’t translate, but he knew it couldn’t be in any way polite) and he’d never had time to learn what Ford had actually been thinking about him behind that ever-present smile.

And Rodney had always known there was a chance he could end all of those friendships. One insult too many, one word too harsh, and even Carson’s patience would wear out or Teyla’s calm would break.

But John Sheppard was another thing entirely.

After he’d accidentally activated the Control Chair, Rodney had grabbed the bewildered major to have him activate some other Ancient equipment for him. Rodney had been jealous, he could admit that now, jealous that this random airman could use technology he couldn’t and use it effortlessly, after all the trouble he’d had even getting Carson to try.

So he was sure he’d been more insulting than usual, because John had such a strong gene, because John was smart and attractive, too, how unfair was that?

But John had _laughed_.

In the rush of getting their mission approved and gearing up, Rodney didn’t have much time to spend wondering about one crazy-haired flyboy, before they were through the gate to Atlantis, waking up a ten-thousand-year-old city and the race of space vampires that wanted to eat them. After that he was far too busy _staying alive_ to bother with even his usual low-level of verbal filters when forced to deal with other people.

Which was why Rodney was sure he couldn’t possibly have heard correctly when John pulled him out of the lab and onto a deserted balcony.

“You want me to what?” said Rodney.

“Be on my off-world team,” said John, which was what Rodney had thought he’d heard.

“Why?”

John frowned. “Because we’re going to find more Ancient stuff out there, so I’ll need the expert on Ancient stuff. And according to you, that’s you. Because we’re definitely going to run into weird alien stuff we’ve never seen before, so I’ll need the expert on weird alien stuff. And according to you, that’s also you.”

“That’s true,” said Rodney. “But that doesn’t mean you’d want me on your team.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m a jerk,” Rodney said, bluntly.

“Oh, I know,” drawled John. “Are you in or out?”

“In,” Rodney said, and to his surprise, he never regretted it.

And, more surprisingly, John never got sick of him. John laughed at Rodney’s insults, goaded Rodney when he was ranting, weathered every bad mood with a smile, until Rodney genuinely believed that John really, genuinely _liked_ him.

Which, _more_ surprisingly, was what had led Rodney to be standing in the middle of John’s quarters, lips still tingling from a thoroughly unexpected kiss, watching John watch him warily.

“Rodney, buddy, you okay?” John asked.

“You kissed me,” Rodney said.

“Yeah,” said John. “I’ve been thinking about it since the repeal went into effect last week – Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. I can tell now, if I wanted.”

“Okay,” said Rodney. “Well, if you’ve gotten that our of your system now, we can go and… What?”

John blinked at him. “Wait, that’s it?”

Rodney blinked back. “What’s it?”

“If you were only going to give me one kiss, I’d have made sure it was better than that!”

“I didn’t give you anything, Sheppard,” protested Rodney. “You took it.”

“Oh,” said John. “That true. But, um, would you? Give me one?”

“A kiss?”

“Yeah. Or, you know, more than one?”

“More?”

“Or we could have dinner first, if you’d rather take this slow.”

“Dinner?” Rodney repeated, then scowled. “John Sheppard, are you trying to _ask me out_?”

“Are you saying yes?” John countered.

“I’m saying… are you sure?” Rodney asked. “You know me, Sheppard. I’m a jerk.”

“Oh, I know,” said John, grinning. “Are you in or out?”

The words were familiar, and Rodney grinned back. “In.”

THE END


End file.
